What went "horribly wrong" is that conservative Democrats and liberal Republicans disappeared. IMO, it's not a bad thing that we have less ideological bleeding between the two parties but it heavily contributes to polarization. The natural course for a polarized country is to Balkanize or unite around a common enemy.

The GOP absolutely should abandon rural people when it becomes convenient to do so. Rural people are fucking useless and they hate people like YOU. YOU are too smart for THEM and they resent YOU for it. YOU are the wrong type of Christian in their eyes. They are also hardcore fiscal liberals which is a disaster for this country. For me, it's always been an uneasy relationship but they were reliable voters to enact meaningful reform.

See my response here for additional details: https://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=81747604&f=119&p=571036419

In 2017, the GOP was in the middle of an ideological and personnel-wise realignment. Their ranks still contained tons of RINOs whose position on a lot of the most salient issues was diametrically opposed to the Tea Party folks or the Trumpist populists. They couldnt get done more than tax cuts as a smallest common denominator because their caucus didn't agree on much else. Once the realignment of the recent years is finished and both parties are sorted along the new cleavages, this will change fundamentally.




A full speaking filibuster would be horribly ageist. I still prefer my compromise of a 55 vote filibuster. This threshold also cools and slows things down, but additionally prevents a tiny majority (e.g. the current Dems with their 50+1 majority) from ramming through too many crappy "small" bills. At the same time, the 55 mark is very attainable for a party which has consistent majority support over consecutive cycles.

This post was edited by Black XistenZ on Jun 20 2021 09:58am

Uh, what? Even if we're just considering a situation where Democrats control the House and Presidency, how is complete control over committees, appointments, and legislation not power?



Yeah, and Democrats only get to pass most significant legislation if they win 60 senate seats. The agenda items for the Republican party fall in line with reconciliation... but it doesn't for the Democratic party. Republicans cut taxes and appoint judges.. they have almost no interest in other stuff.



First, the American people deciding to give the Presidency, House, and Senate to one party is a mandate to govern. Second, I don't know how legislation is impossible to undo, unless you mean that when Democrats pass something, it ends up politically unfeasible to repeal it(like Obamacare). And that's sort of the point... if it's hard politically to repeal, the American people approve of it. Finally, there's no reason to think that a 51 vote requirement means a political party can reshape the government in a couple years. Democrats don't have 50 votes for a lot of their agenda, even though they hold 50 Senate seats. Trump couldn't even repeal Obamacare while needing 50 Republican votes and holding the Senate.

You will never, ever have that kind of purity as a majority. What kind of fantasy do you live in? You live in a parliamentary democracy ffs! You should know better!

That's what it was like prior to the 1970s and we got along just fine. Look, just call a spade a spade and quit making excuses. The filibuster benefits Republicans FAR more than Democrats because it's an obstructionist tool. You would rather have the status quo than allow the progressives to have their way even if it means that your agenda is hampered. Why is it so hard to be honest?

I used to support the filibuster precisely because I feared whatever nonsense the Democrats had up their sleeve. However, it's gotten to the point where it's hampering national security and it's making the country unstable which is unacceptable. If we can't trust the voters to make accurate calls based on RESULTS, there's simply no point in having a democracy anymore. China has shown that the authoritarian model is FAR more effective and I'd rather have an authoritarian America that has global hegemony than an authoritarian China that has global hegemony. It's time to shit or get off the pot.

What are R/GOP policy points with an actual plan?
Wall building- Is pretty standard for them.
Lower taxes on the rich.
Anti Abortion.
I don't see anything in here that is "we gotta beat China" No infrastructure/No Education investment/No equal pay agenda/No investment in lower paying jobs/No Healthcare plan/No "new" energy plans
I don't hear any actual policy ideas that isn't trying to revert to 1950
What else is there that a non radical person could side with on the GOP agenda.

This post was edited by theCrossbones on Jun 20 2021 10:33am

Income and public safety.

Ok what are the ideas to provide?
Income
Public safety

Ok… I don’t disagree, it’s BS. What is the policy to fix it

I'm not sure if rural midwesterners stole your lunch as a kid, but vast tracks of the country aren't useless. And if we were making decisions based on who is most like me, we'd have to dump most of California into the sea.

I see your situation rather similarly. The left aren't your allies, or at least they certainly don't see it that way. They want your support so that they can refashion society in their image. We're all narrative building, and their narrative is exceptionally poor.

Fostering meritocracy and competition is what matters because they are tools of progress. Individuality is good, because it generates disruption and creates a resilient people. Nationalism is good for Americans, we aren't a nation constructed on race, and nationalism is the great unifier. We study the Classical and Enlightenment periods not because we're Eurocentric bigots, but because they form the bedrock of the most successful civilization in the history of our species. "Right" America agrees with me on those things, and so that's where my home must be. The correct people are not in charge, but that's what politics is for. It's our job to acquire the power to change it.